About ToxicTrailers.com

ToxicTrailers.com was launched after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 when the government spent more than $2 billion on FEMA trailers with high levels of formaldehyde that sickened thousands of people. The FEMA trailer tragedy exposed what is a widespread problem in RVs, mobile homes, modular buildings and even conventional buildings that use pressed wood products. Unfortunately, as we approach the tenth anniversary of Katrina, formaldehyde regulations are not being enforced in the U.S., and people's health is at risk. If you are having burning eyes, congestion, sore throat, coughing, breathing difficulties, frequent sinus infections or rashes, and difficulties concentrating, you may have a formaldehyde problem. For questions or to share your story, write 4becky@cox.net.

Monday, October 31, 2011

FEMA won

I lived in a FEMA trailer after Hurricane Katrina. My wife and I suffered physical symptoms from formaldehyde exposure and my pet cockatiel almost died from being in the trailer.

My trailer tested over twice what the EPA says is safe and I later testified in front of Congress about these dangers and the utter contempt that FEMA showed us when we tried to bring this issue to their attention.

When asked how they intended to test the trailers of the 1+ million other victims living in these toxic tin cans, FEMA told me that they would not test any trailers and that I, and those similarly situated, should be glad that we have what they gave us.

Let me tell everyone first hand, formaldehyde is toxic and carcinogenic. It will kill you. You CANNOT trust the government to keep you and your family safe. They have proven that time and time again. All FEMA would need to do is agree to test a sampling of trailers to assure they are safe. Testing costs are not an issue as the test kits are inexpensive.

The reason that FEMA does not want to test these trailer is the same reason they chose not to test the trailers after Hurricane Katrina. They KNOW that the trailers are unsafe and once that is proven with testing, they will have no option but to resolve the issue and provide a safe housing alternative.

People, there are HUGE corporate interests lobbying against any testing. If FEMA ever shows through testing that the trailers they are buying off dealer lots, the same trailers that millions of Americans purchase every year, are not safe, the industry will be put in the position of fixing unsafe manufacturing processes and facing the wrath of the literally millions of victims all across this country.

Let’s be clear, this is ALL about money. Formaldehyde is cheap. There are safe alternatives. FEMA and the manufacturers do not want to use safe methods that eat into corporate profits. Manufacturers would rather have you and your loved ones get sick and risk death then use safe methods that cost them a little bit more.

It is time to force OUR government to do what is right for US and not do the bidding of the lobbyists and manufacturers. FEMA must test these trailers for the sake of the most recent disaster victims and for the sake of the millions more who unwittingly expose themselves to this dangerous carcinogen every day.

Warning: RVS and mobile homes may be hazardous to your health!!

Imagine that you have just lost your home in a natural disaster, and are now waiting to get a FEMA trailer for temporary housing. The fact is, you and your family might be better off in a tent or living with friends and relatives, even if it is crowded.

After Hurricane Katrina, FEMA purchased about 102,000 travel trailers at a cost of $2.6 billion to house the victims of the nation’s largest natural disaster. It turns out that the vast majority of these trailers have excessive levels of formaldehyde. See the results of testing done by the CDC that were announced Feb. 29, 2008 at the website http://cdc.gov/nceh/ehhe/trailerstudy/ or just Google CDC formaldehyde FEMA study. This website also has links to information for residents and health care practitioners.

From the very beginning people who received FEMA trailers after Katrina reported experiencing problems such as irritated eyes, breathing problems, bloody noses, headaches, nausea, frequent respiratory infections and skin rashes. We know one family that moved from the FEMA trailer into a storage shed on their property because their daughter threw up every time she spent any time in the trailer. Another man sleeping in his driveway next to his trailer said, “My FEMA trailer is killing me!” One couple experienced such heavy chest congestion combined with nose bleeds that they abandoned their FEMA trailer to sleep in their truck.

The CDC testing confirmed three earlier rounds of testing done by Sierra Club in Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama in 2006 and 2007 with test kits from Advanced Chemical Sensors. Out of 69 tests, 61 were over 0.1 ppm which represents 88 percent of the trailers tested. The tests used 0.1 ppm as the concentration above which health impacts are expected. However, much lower levels are recommended for long-term exposure. The Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry (ATSDR) Minimal Risk Levels are 0.04 ppm for 1-14 days, 0.03 for 14-364 days and 0.008 ppm for 365 or more days exposure. The lowest of the 69 Sierra Club tests was 0.04. The highest test was 0.39.

As you will see by reading the blogs on this page, the formaldehyde problem is not confined to just RVs and mobile homes purchased by FEMA. Manufacturers state that they didn't do anything differently for RVs and mobile homes sold to FEMA than those sold to the general public. People across the country are reporting formaldehyde problems in not just campers and manufactured housing, but regular homes, offices, churches and schools.

For an in-depth look at this issue including how FEMA and the ATSDR tried to coverup the problem rather than respond to a major public health disaster, see the hearing transcript from the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform at http://oversight.house.gov/story.asp?ID=1413.